Intersection
by Sunset
Summary: Crossover of all three L&O's. Fourth and final chapter posted.
1. Chapter One

Pulsing red lights slashed across their faces. Hard music blasted against their words to each other, forcing them to shout to almost be heard. The man in the middle had an arm draped over each of the girls, all of the giggling and sipping at their drinks. He leaned over and whispered into the ear of the girl under his left arm, she giggled, nodded and leaned in tighter against his chest. He leaned the other way and whispered to the girl under his right arm, she repeated the first girls' actions. The three of them made their way out of club, and onto the streets of New York City.  
  
*****  
  
"It's about to be torn down, engineers were comin' in to map out where to put the dynamite." The officer in uniform said as he led detectives Goren and Eames into what used to be an office building. "They're in what looks like it was a conference room, over here." He pointed toward a doorframe with no door hung on it. Inside, in what had to be the exact center of the room, two women lay together, each on her side, facing the other. Foreheads touching, hands' clasping the others elbows. "Those stab wounds are all over, arms, legs, back, stomach. They all look like they're different depths. Ligature marks on one girls wrists, we figure he had her tied up while he cut up the other one." The cops voice got a little softer, a little more disgusted, "They were alive for a long time."  
  
*****  
  
"They're an 'A'" Goren said, shuffling through the set of crime scene photos on his desk. "An 'A'" he repeated to himself. From her desk, Eames observed her partner, trying once again to dissect his thought process. She failed. "Why did he pick an 'A', that's the question." Shaking his finger in the air, he glanced up at Eames, "Is it his initials? One of the girls' names?" He had more examples, but Eames cut him off before he could continue.  
  
"It could be anything."  
  
"But it's not anything it means something to him. It has to."  
  
"Maybe it's just the beginning, maybe he's headed down the alphabet." Eames offered.  
  
Captain Deakins walked up to their desks, and dropped a folder on to Goren's desk. "He's not doing the alphabet. SVU has another one, two girls forming an 'A', same stab wounds. Go see them."  
  
*****  
  
"Major Case Squad is on the way over," Captain Donald Cragen announced to his SVU detectives. Stopping at Detective Elliott Stablers desk, he continued, addressing everyone. "We're going to take a back seat." He held up his hands, fending off the protests coming at him. "Not entirely. Our orders are to let Goren run the investigation, but we're still a part of it."  
  
"Our scene was first, why does he." Elliott began to protest, but Cragen cut him off.  
  
"Because that's what the Chief of Detective's wants, that's why. This wacko is right up Goren's alley, anyway."  
  
Detective Fin got up from behind his desk and approached the others gathered at Stablers desk. "I worked with Goren a few times, when he was with Narcotics. Good guy. Good cop."  
  
"Thanks" came a voice from behind and above Fin. Goren offered his hand to the SVU captain, "Robert Goren, this is my partner, Detective Alex Eames." Cragen shook hands with each detective, introduced himself and his SVU squad. Goren shook Fins hand, smacking him lightly on the back with his other hand. Then Goren addressed himself to Captain Cragen again. "I'd like to start by looking over your crime scene photos, any notes there may be."  
  
Cragen stopped him in mid sentence "Detectives Benson and Stabler caught the call, they'll give you what ever you need. I'll be in my office." With a final glance around at his detectives, he retreated into his office and shut the door.  
  
Goren watched the SVU captain then turned his attention to Benson and Stabler. Olivia Benson already had the case file in her hand and was holding it out to Goren. "Your girls positioned into an 'A'?"  
  
"Yes. They were." Goren had taken the file from Benson and was already enthralled. To an average person, he would seem distracted as he spoke, but his partner, Eames, knew better. Goren took everything in and stored it away for later.  
  
"Were.were your victims raped? Is that why SVU was called?" His eyes coming off the page, looking first at Benson, then Stabler and back again to the file.  
  
"Yes, both of them had bruising and torn tissue, consistent with rape. And Kaitilin Anthony had rope burns on both wrists, we think he had her tied up while he raped and stabbed Bridgette Kearns." Olivia offered.  
  
"Were your vics raped?" Detective Stabler asked, looking at Eames.  
  
"We won't know for sure until the ME report comes back, but we think so." Eames answered.  
  
"Right now, I'd like to hear opinions on what the 'A's mean." Goren again looked up from the file, but closed it this time, and glanced around at the other detectives. "We can rule out the alphabet, since he's done two 'A's."  
  
Detective Munch broke in "Maybe he's a recovering alcoholic. You know, AA, and he thought these girls were drinking too much, headed down the same path. He saved them."  
  
Goren listened to Munch, and shook a finger at him, "That's a good concept. Let's keep that one in mind. Anyone else?" The six detectives discussed the possibilities, bouncing ideas back and forth, some ideas leading to others. In the end they were still where they'd started.  
  
*****  
  
Executive Assistant District Attorney Jack McCoy poured himself a short scotch and sipped at it as he listened to ADA Carver detail that days court session. When Carver finished, McCoy asked about the girls he'd read about in the paper. "Yes, the Major Case Squad, Detectives Goren and Eames are working with the SVU detectives, Goren is heading the investigation." Carver pulled out a manila folder as he spoke, handing it to McCoy. "Ok, thanks" McCoy said, taking the file. Carver understood that was his cue to leave, said goodnight closing the door behind him.  
  
McCoy picked up the bottle of scotch, ready to pour another, when a long past memory flashed across his mind. He put the scotch back in the bottom desk drawer and turned his attention to the file Carver had handed him. Opening the folder, the photos were the first to catch his attention. Glancing back and forth between the two sets of photos. Expect for the girls hair and clothing, the scenes were indistinguishable. He began to read the reports. Various stab wounds, evidence of one victims writs being immobilized, rape. Something about the positioning of the body's struck a chord. Searching through the piles of files and folders that cluttered his desk, he found what he was looking for. Opening the new case file, he took out two photos of two different crime scenes. Placing all four photos in front of him, he stared at them, not realizing he was playing a word game with himself. He moved two of the photos around and came up with what his mind had know was there all along. "Oh my God" he muttered to himself.  
  
*****  
  
Detectives Brisco and Green walked into McCoy's office. "What's up, Counselor?" Lenny greeted McCoy. "Detectives' Brisco and Green, of the twenty seven, these are Detectives Goren and Eames of the Major Case Squad, Detectives Benson, Stabler, Munch and Finn, from Special Victims." McCoy made the introductions, each detective nodding toward Brisco and Green as their name was mentioned. "We need to get started." McCoy motioned for Brisco and Green to have a seat. Making his way to the back of the room, positioning him self behind an overhead projector, McCoy began explaining why they were all there. "Ten days ago, Detectives Brisco and Green were called to a murder scene, two girls, mid twenties, raped, several stab wounds, their bodies positioned to form a letter of the alphabet. Eight days after that murder, there was a second, same exact circumstances." Goren and Eames looked at each other, then back at McCoy. "Last Tuesday," McCoy continued, "SVU was called to a new scene, same MO, different letter. Yesterday, Goren and Eames took a call, same conditions as the SVU scene, same letter." McCoy then took out the photos. Placing each picture on the projector, so that the image transferred to the screen on the wall, McCoy defined each scene. "The first murder." The photo showed two girls positioned to form the letter 'H'. "The second" McCoy continued placing the SVU photo on the projector, two girls formed an 'A' next to the 'H'. All the detectives could see what was coming. "The third and fourth." McCoy set down the last two photos. Another 'H' and another 'A'. There, on the wall, eight dead girls formed the words HA HA. "We have a serial killer on the loose, Detectives." 


	2. Chapter Two

Chapter Two  
  
The task force was officially formed. All the detectives had brought their case files and notes with them. They left McCoy's office and reconvened in a conference room down the hall.  
  
"So, who goes first?" Lenny asked the room.  
  
"You have two of them, why don't you go ahead." Alex answered.  
  
"Alright. Uh." Lenny pulled his notebook out of his jacket. "From the first scene, victims, Allison Sparr and Chelsey Sharpe. Allison's roommate said she never heard of Chelsey. Allison was a dancer, been in the city for a couple of years. Chelsey was a student, NYU. Just started last fall." Lenny flipped the page of his notebook.  
  
"One of ours went to NYU." Benson commented. "Kaitilin Anthony, history major."  
  
"Chelsey was taking accounting courses. Not much chance they'd have been in the same class." Green supposed.  
  
"What about your other victim?" Eames asked Benson. "Any connection to Kaitilin?"  
  
"Not that we could find." Stabler answered her question. "Bridgette was from out of town. She and the cousin she was visiting went to a club that night, Club Jones." Elliott consulted his own notes. "The cousin said they walked in together, made their way to the bar. He lost track of Bridgette after that." When Stabler mentioned Club Jones, Briscoe and Green glanced at each other, each began to page through their notes, looking for something. Goren noticed them.  
  
"Club Jones ringing bells?" He asked.  
  
"Our first two vics, they were both seen at Club Jones the night they were killed. The two girls from the second scene had never mentioned the club to anyone we interviewed." Green answered.  
  
"It's as good a place as any to start." Goren said, and stood up. "Eames and I are headed to the ME's office regarding our vics from yesterday. Someone want to go to this Club Jones and check it out?"  
  
"We will." Fin volunteered, nodding his head to Munch, then standing.  
  
"All of us will need to know the details of all the scenes. I'd like everyone to make copies of everything they have. All interview notes, everything, and send the copies over to Major Cases. We'll combine it all into one file, and everyone will get a copy. Benson and Stabler, go talk to Dr. Huang, start working up a profile of this guy." Goren picked up his notebook, signaling an end to the meeting.  
  
*****  
  
Green slid behind the driver's wheel of the sedan as Brisco pulled the seat belt around him. "Three girls snatched from the same club." Ed said aloud, but was mainly thinking to his self.  
  
"Two of them at the same time." Lenny gestured with his left hand, hold it out toward Ed as if offering a tangible opinion. "Either he did it one at a time, or he somehow got them to leave together."  
  
Green started the engine, but left the gear in park. "Maybe slipped something into the first girls drink? Helped her outside when she started to feel sick. She passes out, he goes back inside for the second."  
  
"This would be a lot easier if the club had video."  
  
*****  
  
"Who put him in charge?" Munch and Fin were making their way across the parking lot.  
  
"Who? Goren?" Fin asked.  
  
"Yeah. Who died and made him Detective Detective?" Munch asked.  
  
"He's Major Case. He's earned the right to be there. Give him a break, Munch. Give us all a break and don't start your crap."  
  
"Ok, ok, just asking."  
  
*****  
  
"Hey Margaret, it's Olivia." Benson was on her cell phone with Dr. Huang's office. She and Elliott had reached their car, stopping by the trunk before getting in. "Elliott and I are on the way over. Can he see us? We need his help." Olivia paused, listening. "About fifteen minutes. Great, thanks." She punched a button, ending the call. "He'll be free in twenty, he can spend the lunch hour with us." She said to Elliott. They climbed into the car. Elliott in the drivers seat, started the car, still not having said anything. "What?" Olivia asked.  
  
"Nothing." He answered, brushing off the question. "That's not a bad idea. The books, I mean."  
  
"Elliott." Olivia said.  
  
"What?" He turned in his seat and faced her. "Nothing. It's nothing." Answering her unspoken question. "It's just." he paused, knowing the words, but not wanting to sound like an ass.  
  
"It's just that Goren's in charge." Olivia finished his sentence.  
  
"I'll get over it." Elliott stated, more for his self than for her.  
  
*****  
  
Bobby, too was on his cell. "Yeah, it's Goren, let me talk to Kindra, please." While he waited to be transferred, he turned toward Alex. "Not the alphabet."  
  
"Not his name, either." She replied, and pulled out into traffic.  
  
Kindra, Major Case's administrative assistant spoke into Bobby's ear, and he turned his attention back to the phone. Explaining the case briefly, and about the books he wanted created. Finishing his conversation, he hung up and turned his attention back to Eames. "Why would two girls, strangers to each other, agree to leave a club with the same man, also a stranger?"  
  
"Either they were drugged, or stupid." Alex answered . "Or looking for an adventure." Bobby turned toward the car window, staring at the passing scenery, his thoughts on the killer who was taunting the police.  
  
*****  
  
Club Jones was a hole in the wall; blink and you'll miss it. Hours weren't until 9pm, but Munch and Fin saw activity inside when they banged on the door. A short woman with red hair answered the banging. Peeking out the side window, she hollered, "We're closed" and began to turn away.  
  
"You're open." Munch told her, holding up his badge. The woman glanced at the badge, at Munch, then at Fin. She disappeared from the window, reappearing at the door. She opened the door, standing back, allowing the detectives to walk past her, into the club.  
  
Fin already had the ME's photos of the three victims last seen at the club out and handed them to the woman as he spoke. "This girl," he pointed at the photo of Bridgette Kearns, "was killed last Tuesday. She and her cousin were here right before she disappeared. We need to talk to the staff, see if anyone saw her, or the other two, talking to anyone."  
  
"Place gets kind of busy at night, you don't really pay any attention, ya know?" She took the photos from Fin, looked at them for a moment, then handed them back. "I'm sorry, I don't remember seeing them. Just like I didn't remember when the other cops asked."  
  
"We're going to ask everyone again, and we'll need a list of employees who aren't here, their phone numbers and address'." Munch told her. The woman sighed heavily. Both detectives had the urge to grab her by the shoulders and tell her a serial killer was on the loose. But citywide panic was the last thing they needed.  
  
She loosely waved her hand toward the bar area, where a few other people were standing around. "You can ask, maybe someone will remember something. But I doubt it." She walked off in the other direction, leaving the detectives to fend for themselves.  
  
"You here about those girls?" The man who must have been the bartender, asked as they approached.  
  
"Yeah." Fin handed him the photos. "You remember them?"  
  
"Just this one." He pointed to the photo of Bridgette. "She's kind of the type I look at, know what I mean?" He grinned at the detectives, they only scowled back. "Uh, well. Yeah, I remember her, she came in with one of our regulars, he said he was her cousin. He ordered a beer, she asked for a Cosmopolitan. Said her favorite show was Sex in the City, and she wanted to be like them."  
  
Munch was getting frustrated, "Did you see her after you made the drink?"  
  
"Yeah, I was keeping my eye on her. I was trying to figure out what she went for, know what I." he stopped short when he saw their expressions. "I saw her hook up with a guy. They were dancing, last time I saw her."  
  
"Describe him." Fin said, pulling his notebook out of his pocket.  
  
"Average. Normal guy." The bartender again saw the scowls from the detectives, so he tried harder. "White guy. About my height. Average build. Around 25, I guess. Short hair, black or brown. Dressed nice."  
  
"Did you see his face?" Fin asked, still writing, not looking up.  
  
"Not very well."  
  
Munch handed the bartender his card, "Call us if you see him in here again."  
  
*****  
  
Detectives Green and Briscoe entered the semi familiar bedroom of Allison Sparr. Her stripped bed was covered in cardboard boxes. Most marked THRIFT, fewer marked FAMILY.  
  
"I packed up her things. I thought it might be easier if her parents didn't have to do it. I found her diary." Allison's roommate told the detectives as Lenny approached the bed and pulled a box marked FAMILY toward him. He put his hand down on top of the bits and pieces inside. He hated to intrude on the dead girls privacy, and he was stalling.  
  
"We have some other victims," Green began, flipping thought his notebook where he'd written down the other girl's names. "Did Allison ever mention these names to you?" He handed her the pad. The roommate read the names, shaking her head.  
  
"No. Sorry. None of them are familiar. Did the same man kill them as well?"  
  
"We think so." Ed trailed off, not wanting to tell the girl more than she needed to know.  
  
Lenny interrupted, "Alright if we take these with us?" He held up the diary and an address book he'd found in the box.  
  
"Yeah, I'm sure her parents won't mind." She looked back to Ed, and waited for him to continue.  
  
"There are commonalities, we don't know for sure if it's the same guy." He finally told her.  
  
*****  
  
"I can't really tell you anything you don't already know." Dr. Huang sat at behind desk, studying again the crime scene photos in front of him. Olivia and Elliott sat facing him from the other side of the desk.  
  
"Doctor. This isn't your run of the mill murder/rapist." Elliott told him.  
  
"No, of course not." Huang leaned back into his chair. "Ok." He thought for a moment. "He's taunting you. All eight murders were premeditated, he didn't just come up with the 'ha ha' on the spur of the moment. You're looking for someone calculated, but charming enough to get these girls alone with him, at least long enough to subdue them. The standard answers apply. 25-40 years old. Probably white. Loner, but not obviously. He's probably convinced his co-workers he has a busy social life. My guess is that he has a good job. 9-5 type. He's smart, probably good looking, dresses well."  
  
Olivia interrupted "He'd almost have to be, to get all these girls to trust him."  
  
"Exactly. He almost certainly feels betrayed by the police, this is his revenge for that betrayal."  
  
"You think he's been arrested?" Elliott slid up in his chair, leaning against the front of the desk.  
  
"Maybe, maybe not. More likely, it was someone he cared about who was effected by the police. Or at least, he thinks they were."  
  
"So this betrayal, it may not have really happened?"  
  
"Something happened. It just may be a bigger event in his mind than in reality."  
  
Elliott and Olivia thanked the doctor and headed back out to their car.  
  
"How the hell are we supposed to find an incident, that happened to someone, sometime, that may, or may not be any big deal?" Stabler asked. Olivia didn't answer. She was wondering the same thing.  
  
*****  
  
After leaving the ME's office, where all they got was confirmation of what they already knew, Goren and Eames headed back to OPP. Bobby stopped at Kindra's desk on the way to his to check on the progress of the task force books.  
  
"I've got Detectives' Munch and Fin's notes running through the copier now. They're in the captain's office waiting for me to finish. Captain Cragen from SVU and Lt. Van Buren from the twenty seventh, are in there as well." They spoke a few more moments on how the books should be organized, then Bobby thanked her and headed toward Captain Deakins office.  
  
Giving a short double rap on the glass, Bobby opened the door and stepped in to the office. Alex had went in while he was talking to Kindra, she was now seated in one of the chairs facing Deakins desk, as was Lt. Van Buren, who stood when Goren walked in.  
  
"Detective," she smiled as she walked over to him, extending her hand, "it's good to see you again."  
  
"L.T." Bobby said, shaking her hand, glancing at Fin "this is getting to be a Narcotics reunion."  
  
"Munch and Fin were filling us in on their interview with the Club Jones bartender." Deakins said, getting back to business.  
  
Before the interview rehash could continue, there was another short knock on the door, and Detectives Green and Brisco came in.  
  
"We gave the girl our notes." Lenny told Goren jerking his thumb toward Kindra's desk. Bobby noticed Benson and Stabler were there, handing everything over to Kindra. Lenny had kept Allison's address book with him. He held it up shaking it lightly at Goren. "We've got Allison Sparrs' address book, none of the other vics are in here."  
  
Benson and Stabler came into the office. "Kindra said it won't be long until we'll have our notes back." Olivia reported, walking further into the office, and pulling up the chair next to Alex.  
  
As they waited, each set of partners told the rest of the group what they'd learned since that morning. The newest information came from the profile suggestions Dr. Huang had offered Benson and Stabler. Eleven of New York City's finest discussed the case while a few feet away, the copier droned. 


	3. Chapter Three

Chapter Three  
  
They had retreated to a corner of the club; it was still loud, but a little easier to hear each other.  
  
"So, what do you like to do, Alex?" She was sitting very close to him, but now leaned in even further. He answered her question with a whisper in her ear. She pulled back from him, giggling, and playfully slapped his arm. "Naughty boy. I meant your hobbies."  
  
"That is my hobby," he laughed. "Lorna, could you be persuaded to go somewhere a little quieter with me?"  
  
"A little quieter, huh?" She looked him up and down. If you couldn't trust a guy like this, who could you trust? Besides, he was cute, and she liked him. "Ok. Just let me go tell my girlfriends I'm leaving."  
  
"I'll wait for you outside." He smiled as she walked away. If he'd known she had girlfriends with her, he might have tried the other angle. Still, he was pleased with the results so far, and the night was still young.  
  
*****  
  
The task force casebooks had been passed out. Each detective now had copies of every interview, every photo, everything.  
  
Goren was in the interrogation room, he had nine pieces of paper taped to the wall. On eight of them, he'd written down the name of one victim, her vitals. Anything he came across from the casebook, he wrote it down. Apart from the others, a lone ninth sheet listed the profile of the killer.  
  
Alex stood in the doorway, watching him. After a moment, she walked in and sat down at the table, reading what he'd written. "Expect for the club, these girls have nothing in common."  
  
"Kaitilin and Bridgette, from the SVU scene were at Club Jones, just not together, that we know of." Goren stopped writing and turned to look at Eames as he spoke. "Allison and Chelsey, Brisco and Green's first scene, they were both at Club Jones. But the other girls." He turned back toward the wall, taping the appropriate paper as he spoke. "Clarissa and Monica, the two- sevens' second scene, they lived together. Clarissa had told her mother she had a date the night she was killed, but she never mentioned the guys name to her." He turned around, pulling a chair away from the table, rotated it and sat, his hands gripping the chair back. "I think that the date was with the killer. I think he picked Clarissa up in a club, maybe not Club Jones, but a club. He finds out she has a room mate, so instead of killing her that night, he makes a date with her, and gets two birds with one stone."  
  
Alex listened, it was possible, but they that didn't get them any further than they were.  
  
Deakins stuck his head in right then. "We've got another one. Three girls this time."  
  
*****  
  
The SVU detectives were already then when Goren and Eames arrived. Olivia and Fin stood to one side, three purses at their feet. Each detective was searching through a wallet. Olivia found what she was looking for, and held it up. "Lorna Wade." She looked at the picture. "She's the one in the middle."  
  
Fin had found the id in the wallet he had. "The one on top is Melissa Hayes. The one on the bottom is Katherine Willetts."  
  
Goren and Eames stood opposite Munch and Stabler, looking down at the three dead women. They formed the letter I.  
  
*****  
  
"This girl" the ME tapped a finger toward Lorna's body, "she was strangled. The other two were stabbed, just like all the others. Numerous wounds, same weapon." She continued. "She and the Hayes girl both have ligature marks on their wrists. If I had to take a guess, I'd say they were tied up while he killed Willetts. And this girl," she pulled down the sheet, uncovering Melissa Hayes' face. "Her eyes are glued shut."  
  
"Glued shut?" Olivia asked, looking from the doctor to Elliott.  
  
"That's not all." The doctor moved to the gurney where Katherine Willetts lay. "Her eardrums are punctured."  
  
Goren groaned, shrugging his shoulders in an expatriated circle and looked at his partner. "See no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil."  
  
*****  
  
"But what does it mean?" Elliott asked. They had all walked out into the corridor.  
  
"Does the 'I' have something to do with it?" Munch asked. "Is he saying that he sees, hears and speaks no evil? He's a religious freak."  
  
"That doesn't jive with the other scenes. Unless we missed something." Ed answered. "And what are the chances of all of us missing something?"  
  
Bobby stood off to one side, "I don't think it means anything." They all looked at him. "The 'I' means something, probably the beginning of a word. But the evil thing. He's just screwing with us."  
  
*****  
  
"Goren doesn't think it means anything?" Van Buren asked after Lenny and Ed had told her the events of the morning.  
  
"The idea that he's messin' with us makes more sense than the idea that he's telling us something." Ed answered.  
  
"Well, he's not usually wrong." Van Buren told them.  
  
"You used to work narcotics together?" Brisco asked.  
  
She nodded. "And Fin too. Not for very long, I came here shortly after Goren joined Narcotics. But I was impressed with him then, and I'm only more so now."  
  
"We've got to go interview the Hayes family." Green prompted Brisco.  
  
*****  
  
"I suppose if there were seven victims, Goren would find a way to make it into the deadly sins." Munch deadpanned. "Or the dwarfs."  
  
"Man, I told you, lay off." Fin warned, then ignored Munch's protests.  
  
*****  
  
Goren and Eames were at their desks when Olivia and Elliott walked in, followed by a woman in her forties.  
  
"Detectives." Stabler said, getting their attention. "This is Alice Willetts, Katherine's mother." He indicated the woman standing next to Olivia. "We thought you'd like to hear what she has to say."  
  
Goren and Eames looked up at Alice from their desks. She was in deep grieving, but she wanted to do all she could to help the police catch the sick bastard that had killed her daughter. "Katherine had a date last night. She told me she'd met the man at a club two nights ago."  
  
Eames interrupted "Did she tell you the name of the club?"  
  
"No, she didn't."  
  
Eames cast a frustrated glance to Goren. Olivia took Alice's arm in her hands. "But she did mention the name of the man she was seeing." Goren and Eames sat up straighter in their chairs, unconsciously leaning forward.  
  
"Oh. Yes. She said his name was Alex. Alex Eames."  
  
*****  
  
They thanked her for her help, and arranged for a black and white to drive her home. Stabler called Fin's cell, told him to head toward One PP. Olivia called Green, told him the same thing.  
  
Eames had begun to search her memory. After all the years on the force, all the people she had interviewed, encountered, arrested. All the lives she had touched through her job. The profile didn't fit any of them, and at the same time, fit a lot of them.  
  
They had arranged to meet in the first floor conference room at One Police Plaza. Much like on that first day, in the DA's office, the detectives again gathered around a large table. Only this time, Captains Deakins and Cragen and Lt. Van Buren were there as well. The mayor made a brief appearance, telling them it was of "utmost importance" for this killer to be caught. On his way out, he cast an obvious glance toward Eames. Word travels fast.  
  
When the door shut behind the mayor, Deakins walked over to his favorite detective. She was at one of the tables, her elbows propped on the table, her head in her hands. "Come up with anything?" he knew as he said it that it was a stupid question.  
  
"Yeah." Alex raised her head and looked at him. "A migraine."  
  
"Well. Huang did say the incident might all be in his mind. And, there's really nothing telling us he knew your name before you were involved with the investigation." he tried to reassure her.  
  
"I'd still feel better if I pulled some case files, just to see." Alex told him.  
  
"Alright. We'll look at some of the files, but not you." He held up a hand to stop her protests before they started. "You're to close. You go talk to the Wade family." His proclamation made, Deakins walked away.  
  
Alex looked over her shoulder, to where Bobby was standing. "He's right. You are to close. Go talk to the family and friends. Take Benson with you. Stabler and I will go over the files."  
  
Grudgingly, Alex stood, and pulled her coat off the back of the chair with a flourish. Glancing at Olivia to make sure she'd heard, Alex walked quickly out of the room, Olivia a few paces behind her.  
  
*****  
  
"You think we'll find anything?" Elliott asked. He sat at Eames' desk, her pc warming up. Goren sat across from him, at his own desk, reading from his pc.  
  
"No way to know." Goren answered distractedly, still reading from the screen. He finished the sentence, and turned to face Elliott. "The captain said there was a possibility he's using her name just because she's involved in the case."  
  
Stabler cut him off. "But why hers? He'd have gotten our attention just as well if he'd used my name, or yours."  
  
"Yes" Goren answered, loosely pointing a finger at Elliott. "But if he'd have used one of our names, we'd be looking at ourselves, no matter how remote the possibility. By using Alex's name, since she's a woman, he'd know we'd wouldn't waste time looking at her. Besides," Bobby turned back toward his computer, "I just read the newspaper articles. They don't mention Alex by name."  
  
"So you think it is related to a case she's been on?"  
  
Bobby gave a one-shouldered shrug. "It's possible."  
  
*****  
  
"She's been missing since Tuesday." Carolyn Hayes, Melissa's mother, dabbed a tissue to one eye, then the other.  
  
"Did you call the police?" Green asked.  
  
Melissa's father, Henry, nodded. "The officer didn't seem to worried. He seemed to think she was partying." His distaste for the word, and the notion was obvious. Carolyn began to cry again, he pulled her to him, murmuring in her ear.  
  
After a few uncomfortable moments, Brisco spoke. "Do you know where she was going the night she disappeared?"  
  
"She said she was meeting some friends at a club." Henry said. "Do you think that bastard had her all this time?"  
  
Brisco and Green looked at each other, then back at Henry. Seeing that look exchanged, Henry didn't need the question answered. He lowered his head next to his wife's and held her tighter.  
  
*****  
  
Lorna Wade's sister was a little more help. "The Banger. That's where she was. She went there with two friends, Jessie and Sally."  
  
"We'll need to speak to them. Do you have their numbers?" Olivia asked.  
  
"I'm sure Lorna has them." she paused, realizing what she'd said, and corrected herself. "Had them, written down. I'll go check." She headed down the hall, already crying again.  
  
Olivia stood up from the couch where she and Eames were sitting and moved to the window. "This is the part I hate the most."  
  
"It's worse when you have to be the one to tell them." Alex replied.  
  
Each detective stayed silent, both remembering victims and their families. They were both so lost in thought, each jumped a little when Lorna's sister came back into the room.  
  
"Here. I found it on her dresser. Jessie and Sally are both in there." She handed Alex the address book.  
  
"Thanks." Alex said and copied down the numbers.  
  
*****  
  
Out of the corner of his eye, Bobby saw Elliott suddenly sit up straighter and bring his face closer to the computer screen, reading more intently.  
  
"What you'd find?"  
  
"During her first year in vice," Elliott explained, quickly looking across the desks and then back to the computer, "Eames was involved in the arrest of a Matthew Kirkland, booked for solicitation."  
  
"She used work decoy." Goren added.  
  
"Yeah. She was working and Kirkland approached her, offered fifty bucks, and she busted him. File says he called his wife, and she refused to come bail him out, so he spent the night in jail. In the morning, Kirkland said the wrong thing to the wrong person, and wound up dead." He looked over at Goren. "The wife felt so guilty, she walked out in front of a bus." Bobby stood and walked over to Elliott's side of the desk, reading.  
  
"This says their son, Andrew, was sent to child welfare after that." Bobby did the math in his head. "He'd be about the right age for our perp." He flagged his fingers at the keyboard, "See if there's anything else in there on Andrew Kirkland."  
  
*****  
  
"Yeah. I saw what he looked like." Benson and Eames had tracked down Lorna's friend Jessie. "I talked to him, actually. He hit on me, but he wasn't my type. So he moved on to Lorna. I don't think he realized we knew each other."  
  
The detectives had purposely not introduced themselves by name. "Did he happen to tell you his name?" Alex asked, a little anxious.  
  
"No, we didn't get that far in conversation."  
  
"We're gonna need you to come down and meet with a sketch artist." Olivia said.  
  
*****  
  
"He's been arrested twice for assault. Knocked his girlfriend around a couple of times." Andrew Kirkland's mug shot looked back at them from the computer screen.  
  
Benson and Eames walked into the squad room, Jessie right behind them. When they saw their partners hunched over the same computer, both women quickened the pace, leaving Jessie to catch up.  
  
"What'd you find?" Alex asked arriving at the desk half a second before Olivia.  
  
Both Goren and Stabler pulled themselves away from the screen when they heard her voice. They were each about to answer her question when Jessie walked up, curiously looking from one detective to another, her eyes crossing over the screen. And stopped. "That's him," she said simply. 


	4. Chapter Four

Chapter Four  
  
Fin and Munch were just walking into the station when Stabler picked up Alex's desk phone to call Green and Brisco. They immediately sensed the change in the atmosphere; the adrenalin rush was almost palpable.  
  
"We got something?" Fin asked looking from Olivia to Elliott.  
  
"We've got an id." Elliott told him, and then turned his attention to the phone telling Green to meet them at Kirkland's last known address.  
  
Olivia filled in the details, explaining how Jessie knew what the perp looked like, the connection to Alex, and the positive id.  
  
Munch listened to her, then brought his hands together in a single clap. "We got him."  
  
"Green and Brisco are half way there now. They'll wait for us." Elliott said after hanging up the phone.  
  
"Patrol cars are on the way," Goren said, putting his phone down "no sirens, they're going to park a block away until they hear from us." Then, almost as an afterthought, he asked, "Do we have a phone number for Kirkland?"  
  
Alex copied the number off the computer screen and handed it to Goren. He shoved the paper inside his notebook, and looked around the room, "Let's go."  
  
*****  
  
Benson and Stabler climbed into the back seat of the SUV. Eames drove, Goren in the passenger seat. No one spoke. Olivia thought to herself that she finally understood the phrase, "silence is deafening." Three blocks away, Bobby pulled the phone number out of his notebook and dialed his cell phone. He paused for a moment, holding the phone to his ear. Olivia and Elliott glanced at each other, wondering what the hell he was doing. Bobby spoke into the phone "Mr. Kirkland?" Olivia and Elliott looked at each other again, both thinking that Goren had lost his mind. Alex only glanced over at him, she didn't know what he was doing, but she knew what ever it was, it was a good idea. "Hi, Mr. Kirkland, my name is Bobby, and I'd like to tell you about the good book." Goren suddenly pulled the phone away from his ear and clasped it shut. He looked at Alex, then in the back seat, "He's home," he said simply.  
  
They passed three black and whites parked a block away. Finding Brisco and Greens car, Alex parked behind them, Munch and Fin pulling up behind the SUV. All the detectives climbed out of their prospective cars and gathered on the sidewalk. "He's up there." Goren told them, then sent Munch and Fin to the left side of the building, Brisco and Green to the right side, just in case Kirkland ran. With Goren a step ahead of them, Eames, Stabler and Benson walked to the front of the building. Stabler pulled his walkie-talkie out of his pocket and signaled the black and whites to move in.  
  
Kirkland lived on the third floor; the detectives took the stairs silently and quickly. They found the apartment, and drew out their weapons. Benson and Eames pressed themselves up against the wall on either side of the door. Goren and Stabler stood right in front of the door, ready. Goren looked to Eames, she gave a short nod. He then looked to Benson, she too nodded that she was ready. Goren stepped up and pounded on the door. "ANDREW KIRKLAND, NYPD, OPEN UP." They heard the metal on metal sound of a chain lock being undone, and another lock being twisted open. The door handle turned. They all unconsciously bent their knees, ready to pounce as the door opened.  
  
"Hi." Andrew Kirkland said and smiled as if four NYPD detectives showed up at his door and pointed their guns at him every day. He smiled as if he'd been expecting them.  
  
  
  
*****  
  
It was an easy arrest. Kirkland didn't resist in the slightest. They read him his Miranda, and he answered yes, he did understand his rights as they had been read to him. Benson slapped the handcuffs on him; they walked him down the stairs and stuck him in the back of a patrol car.  
  
Munch, Fin, Green and Brisco came out from the back of the building, all surprised by the lack of, well, the lack of anything, in the arrest.  
  
They took him back to One Police Plaza and stuck him in the interrogation room. All eight detectives, and their three boss' met on the other side of the mirror. They had no evidence. Yes, they had an id from the girl, but she only saw Lorna leave with him, she didn't see him kill her. They were going to have to get a confession. Deakins looked over to Goren, who had positioned himself in a corner of the room, not paying attention to any of the discussion, he was studying the Kirkland. "Goren." Deakins got his attention, then nodded toward the glass. Bobby knew what he meant, and left the room. All the detectives watched as he reappeared on the other side of the mirror.  
  
*****  
  
"I'm Detective Robert Goren." Bobby pulled out a chair and sat down.  
  
"You hear to tell me about the good book?" Kirkland asked, smiling. He put his fingers behind his ears and wiggled them, "I'm good with voices," he explained.  
  
Goren chuckled slightly at having been found out, but stopped suddenly, and stared at Kirkland.  
  
"I don't have any evidence," he told him.  
  
"Evidence? Evidence of what?" Kirkland asked, with obviously fake innocence.  
  
"We think you are the Alphabet Killer." Bobby used the name the press had been using.  
  
"Really." Kirkland faked being shocked. "You think I did that?" He kept smiling.  
  
"Yes. I think you did. So do all my associates." Bobby motioned toward the mirror. "We know you killed those girls, but we can't prove it."  
  
"So. Why am I here?"  
  
"Because the longer you're here with us, the longer some poor girl out there has to live."  
  
Kirkland laughed out loud at that. He was genuinely tickled at the thought. "Is this the part where I confess?"  
  
"If you'd like to, go right ahead." Bobby told him, and settled back in his chair.  
  
"I would really like to help you, but." Kirkland stood up. "I don't know much about the law, but I do know that if you don't have any evidence, then I don't have to stay here." He took a step toward the door, waiting to see if Goren would stop him. Bobby just watched from where he was sitting, and crossed his legs.  
  
"You're correct. We can't charge you, you're free to go."  
  
Kirkland headed to the door, twisting the knob.  
  
On the other side of the glass, everyone but those who had worked with Bobby was outraged. Munch headed to the door to stop Kirkland in the hall. Fin grabbed him by the arm. "Just watch."  
  
  
  
Kirkland twisted the knob, and pulled the door part way open.  
  
"There's just one thing I can't figure out." Kirkland stopped; waiting to hear what Bobby had to say. "What was the 'I' going to spell?"  
  
"Innocent." Kirkland answered. And froze.  
  
The detectives on the other side of the mirror stood, jaws dropped, not believing they just heard such a simple confession.  
  
Goren quietly uncrossed his legs and stood up, facing Kirkland. Waiting to see what he was going to do. Kirkland bolted. Throwing the door all the way open, he thrust his self into the hall. Turning his head over his shoulder, checking to see how close Goren was, Kirkland didn't see Munch step out into the hallway and plunk his leg out, so it spanned the width of the corridor. Kirkland tripped, and went sprawling down the hall, face first.  
  
Later that afternoon, the detectives stood, milling around Goren and Eames' desks, making small talk. Silence fell over the group when the conference room door opened, EADA Jack McCoy and ADA Ron Carver came out, followed by Kirkland, in handcuffs, and his court appointed lawyer. Kirkland stopped, and stared at Goren until an inpatient uniformed officer pulled him away. The lawyer followed them down the hall. McCoy and Carver made their way across the room, and McCoy spoke to all the detectives. "Life without parole." 


End file.
